What she said:

“Can you recommend a good face moisturizer that’s not too expensive? My skin varies from oily to dry, but in the colder months it’s pretty consistently dry.

I’ve been using a Bobbi Brown moisturizer. I like it, but I’m looking for something more natural and less expensive.”

What I said:

First, I told her that we actually seem to have similar skin. Mine also gets very dry in the winter, so it’s reasonable to assume that what works for me might also work for her. I explained to her that her seasonal dry skin is just as aggravated, if not more so, by the facial cleanser that she is using as it is by the moisturizer. I suggested these two cleansers, telling her that they both clean my skin without drying it out:

Karen’s Botanicals Rehydrating Olive Oil Cleanser (Hazard score of 0 and around %12.50 for 4 ounces)  and Aubrey Organics Vegecol Facial Cleansing Lotion ( Hazard score of 2 and around $15.00 for 8 ounces)

Then, I told her about my favorite moisturizer of all time. I explained that it was more like a gel than a lotion, but that it effectively moisturized my face without making it look oily or breaking me out.

Karen’s Botanicals Rehydrating Aloe Vera Lotion (Hazard score of 1 and around $14.00 for 4 ounces)

I also gave her a link to a moisturizer that I use that works well for dry patches.

Tate’s Natural Miracle Conditioner ( around $7.00  for 5 ounces and, while it’s not located on the Cosmetic Safety Database, it still has very good ingredients. It’s basically just water, fruits, spices, and flowers. “Tate’s the Natural Miracle Conditioner has no dyes, no gluten, no colors, no iodine, no glycols, no sulfates, no parabens, no fragrance, no phosphates, no pesticides, and no animal testing.”)

Burt's Bees deep cleansing cream makes my face so soft!

By the way, that is the cleanser that I’ve been using for a while now and it is slammin. I have found that cleansing creams are much less harsh on my skin than bar soaps or other foaming cleansers. My skin tends to retain more of its moisture when I use creams. It tingles while I am washing my face too (in a good way).